Chapter 1:
You Who Changed Me
Away from the kingdom's reach, Rowan lived as a ghost in the countryside. He had traded the noise of the city for a little big house buried in the silent wood, an outcast feared for his power and his notorious reputation. To the world, he was revered as— "Hey, Mr. Evil Eyes! Could you please not get cozy with the Goddess? Seriously, it's revolting to watch and a pain in my eyes," said Loren, self proclaimed follower of Alisha.
"Yes, on the honor of being an eternal being I shall not let you crawl any more closer to our Goddess than you already have. Know your place, you evil schematic rascal.", Ouroboros rumbled.
The hatred in their eyes was nothing Rowan hadn't seen before. Rowan stood there accepting the direct hatred and displeasure they showed. He always knew about it, they loved Alisha and they treated her like a Goddess. But they despised him, for one of the reasons being he was with their Goddess. He was the stain on that divinity. The unworthy one who stood too close to something they considered holy.
"If you have an ounce of shame leave this place and never return," Ouroboros shouted and moved forward making eye contact with Rowan and continued calmly placing his hand on Rowan's shoulder, "Alisha would be happier and free if you were not around." With disgust in his eyes as he shrugs his hand off. "She serves an impudent person like you when she could achieve anything in the world. I know how you met her. You took advantage of her misery and enslaved her here making it look like you helped her," argued Ouroboros.
Rowan didn't argue. He didn't even flinch. He simply exhaled — a slow, measured sigh that somehow carried more weight than any rebuttal could — and when he finally spoke, his voice was unhurried, almost gentle. "If my presence is such a thorn in your side," he said, meeting Ouroboros's gaze without a trace of anger, "then I will leave this instant." He paused for just a moment, something unreadable flickering behind his eyes. "Take care of Alisha for me." The words landed softly, but with undeniable finality. "She still has much to learn about this world."
"You don't have to tell us about it. We will take care of Goddess better than you ever did," said Loren.
Rowan left the room. He packed a small backpack with all the necessities and some raw food before he left. Rowan moved through the house one last time with the calm of a man who had already made his peace before the decision was ever spoken aloud. Outside, the air was still. When he stood outside, he glanced back at his house which he worked blood and sweat to make but he was not sad or depressed about losing it. Strangely, there was no ache in it. The only thought he had was of Alisha. Would her life be better without him. Was this the thing he should have done long ago. It is not like he did not understand that he was just taking advantage of a favorable situation where She had no place to go or do and he took her in on the pretext of hiring her. "Nothing comes from thinking about it now. Let's go." His last words before he walked away into the wild forest which surrounded the serene home.
This calls for the celebration. Let us all party!
"But there are only two of us," Loren pointed out, glancing around the otherwise empty space.
"Loren." The other fixed him with an exasperated look, the look of a man who could not believe such trivialities were being raised at a moment like this. "Do not focus on such minor details. Let us cheer for what's to come. Now that Evil Eyes is gone days would be much more simpler and easier. Our Goddess would not waste her time lingering around with him."
Loren considered this for a moment, then smiled — slow and satisfied. "You are right. And now —" he straightened with quiet delight, "— we can have her all to ourselves."
"Precisely." The other smiled — wide, certain, entirely unbothered by what they could not see. "Now, without further ado — let us begin."
The celebration had barely begun when the window — left carelessly ajar — swung open just enough to permit an uninvited guest. A silhouette slipped through with the easy confidence of someone who had never once considered that she might not be welcome. The familiar shape of her stilled the room instantly. She looked between them, taking in the scene with an expression caught somewhere between amusement and genuine bewilderment. "What are you celebrating?" she asked, arms folding loosely. "What is the occasion?" Her gaze swept the room once more. "I do not remember either of you having a birthday today."
"Oh, it is just you Chez. What brings you here at midnight," said Ouroboros.
"I was passing by," she began, her tone easy, conversational, "when I noticed Mr. Evil Eyes heading toward the dark forest. Alone." She paused, as though still turning it over in her mind. "It struck me as odd. That part of the forest is dangerous — the only things found deep in there are rare medicinal herbs, and no one ventures that way without reason." Her eyes settled on them, genuinely searching and glancing with focus. "So I thought perhaps something had happened. Was anyone hurt? What is going on?"
"We kicked him out. He wont bother coming back now."
What!?
"Are you sure this Would not cause any trifle."
"What trouble?" came the dismissive reply. "The problem is gone."
"I am not quite sure about that. Alisha was pretty fond of him and he too liked her." Chez mentioned as someone neutral to everything. She was just a spectator witnessing how things unfold. She had no stake in the outcome, no allegiance to defend. She was simply someone who had watched it all unfold from a comfortable distance and had the clarity that distance allows. "I was rooting for both of them. And now when things felt like they proceeding well you kick him out. On what pretext?"
"Kick who out?"
Her voice — usually the softest, most unhurried thing in any space she occupied — arrived tight and breathless, laced with a panic she hadn't quite managed to conceal beneath the question.
Every head turned towards the door entrance.
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